Yakov’s Vodka Recipe – Easy Sugar Wash

I’ve put together an easy vodka recipe that anyone starting out can make. This is one of the first recipes I started with when learning to make moonshine and is by far the easiest. All the ingredients can be purchased from your grocery store. Details are below have fun and be safe.

Ingredients:

7 kg White Sugar

200 g Yeast Nutrients

1 Pack Turbo Yeast

Clearing agent ( Optional)

Materials

23 L Fermenter ( I use Carboy should be food grade)

Large stainless steel stirring spoon

Digital Thermometer

Instructions

Clean and sterilize fermenter with bleach, be sure to rinse well after

Add 8 – 10 L of hot water into 23 L fermenter

Measure out 7 kg of sugar and slowly add to fermenter while using spoon to stir in sugar

Once sugar is dissolved top up fermenter with cool water to bring temperature to between 23 – 30 degrees C

After 24 hours stir well to aerate sugar wash ( This aeration allows for increased yeast reproduction as yeast will reproduce until there is no more oxygen at this point they will begin to create alcohol).

Fermentation will complete within 4 -8 days. Check fermentation by either measuring specific gravity, or by tasting for left over sugars.

Distilling

Because you are making vodka which is flavourless a reflux still should be used. I’ve written a post about how to distill using a reflux still that will guide you through the process.

Notes:

This recipe should make approximately 7 L of vodka moonshine at 40 % abv.

Flavouring

Don’t stop with just making homemade vodka now that you have this base spirit you can flavour it with so many spices, herbs and fruits. Including maple syrup, cinnamon, vanilla and chillies. Check out our home made baileys recipe for a great gift idea.

Check out this home made vodka flavoured with fresh strawberries and kiwi fruit

Don’t stop there you can also infuse your moonshine with fresh fruit like strawberries, blueberries and kiwis which will impress just about anyone you serve it to. Check out our list of fruit infused moonshine recipes for details.

I’ve used a few different Turbo Yeast in the past but like Alcotec Turbo Pure 48 it’s a great all-round superyeast for home makers of moonshine spirit. It will ferment 6 kg of white sugar in a 25 L solution in 48 hours assuming you maintain proper conditions. You can buy it at Amazon.com/Alcotec-Turbo-Pure-48

I totally agree. I have tried many turbos and find Alcotech 48 to be the most consistent and foolproof. I have been using it for many years and have never read any instructional websites or done much research. Just do what the packet says. I just ;put one packet with 8 kgs of white sugar. It finishes bubbling after about 5 days in warm weather then I leave it a couple of days more to clear a little but not necessary. I normally get 8-9 litres of 40% every time.

The clearing agent is optional.. If you’re going to add it do it after the fermentation process has finished. Add it to the wash and let sit for a day or so, the wash should become noticeably clearer. The nice thing about a clearing agent is that it removes most of the solids from the wash keeping it out of your still!

If you’re making a Vodka using a sugar mash like we are doing here you could use 100 grams of distillers yeast per 5 Gallons or 23 L batch. Alternatively you could make a starter first to cut down on the amount of yeast you need to use. Typically a 5 gram pack is all you would need. Here is a Guide To Making Dry Yeast Starter that should explain the process.

Add the oranges after you distill the mash, it’s super easy to infuse vodka with fruit. When you make Vodka you’re going to use a Reflux still this type of still will strip all the flavor from the wash so there isn’t much point in adding grain or fruit to the wash. If I have some time this week I’ll do a post on fruit infused vodka for you.

Actually, I was first thinking about Vodka, but then remembered about Marvin “Popcorn” Sutton who I have seen on the moonshiner’s show. Went looking for a recipe from him, and found this one that was supposedly printed in his book.

Ingredients: 25 pounds coarse ground white corn meal, enough to fill half of your barrel/container 50 pounds of sugar – 1 pound of sugar per gallon of water of total volume 1 gallon of malt – can be corn, barley, rye or a combination.

Thought I would make my first batch in remembrance/honor of him.

Would the corn meal be just like the stuff you can buy in the store in bags just like flour, or something more like from a feed store?

I plan on starting with a pot still, but am going to make a thumper to use with it. I do like your reflux design, and will probably make one in the future because I really am a Vodka drinker.

Sick that’s a great idea.. Ya should try to find a better place then the grocery store to buy it. I did this a while back and ended up spending a wack of money on corn meal at my local store because I couldn’t track down a supplier lol Anyone know a cheap place to buy bulk Corn Meal ? Keep me posted on how the still build goes send me some pics and I’ll post them when you get er done 🙂 https://learntomoonshine.com/homemade-stills-send-us-your-setup

What’s heating your still ? Internal or external heat source ? Keep in mind the finer you grind the corn the harder it will be to filter it during the sparging process. If your using an electric internal element a fine grind can cause you a world of problems because any sediment that’s left in the wash will burn to the element .

I ground the corn a little finer, and also used some white corn meal with it (I was short on corn).

I live in Texas, so I don’t need to heat the mash, just keep it indoors. When I distille it, I will be using an external hot plate.

I have looked, and cannot find a “good answer” as to stirring the mash as it works. Seems to me that stirring up the settled corn parts would help the yeast get at all the sugar still in it. But then, cooking the mash with barley malt was suppose to get all the sugar out of the corn and into the water. Which is correct?

No need for amylase enzyme in this recipe as we are not converting starches to sugars. Just using pure sugar, If you want a fast fermentation keeping the temperature at the proper level is the most important factor.

Thanks for pointing this out. In step #5 You’re making a Yeast Starter, When I wrote this article I forget to explain that. I’ve corrected this, If anyone else has an edit or suggestion on content I can add to this feel free to drop me a line.

Im new to this and trying to learn. Do you make a yeast starter the day before and then add the starter to the wash mix along with turbo yeast and nutrient? Are you using the turbo yeast in the starter as well or just any packet?

Here’s some info on making a dry yeast starter. You can do this with the packs of turbo yeast it will help accelerated fermentation. Make sure you join our Facebook group it’s a great place to ask questions.